# Cohiba or Faux-hiba?



## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

I have little experience with Habanos, but did some research here before posting. Band meets the necessary criteria as far as I see. Triple cap is there. There is a bit of a vein in the wrapper, but not a very big one. However, the person I got it from purchased it at a Florida B&M, and didn't know the guy from Adam, so it's not like it was a buddy to buddy hook up. They were just out for purchase at $15 a pop. Is this guy really selling these to anyone who walks in his shop? 

I don't care one way or the other what it is, just trying to help a buddy figure it out. Please let me know what you think. I took about 20 pics, but I have a cheap camera and only two came out decent. 

Thanks!


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## Snake Hips (May 30, 2008)

Well the story doesn't sound good at all, but that cigar looks surprisingly good. Color, wrapper, cap, band...but the source is almost auto-fake. Only thing I can see is possibly excess black at the top of the band.

What is it _supposed_ to be, a Robusto? Does it match the size specs of the Cohiba Robusto?

Tell him to smoke it knowing it's most likely counterfeit. He might be pleasantly surprised - it's either a very good fake or it's real.


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## Saint Jimbob (Aug 21, 2008)

A friend had sent me a Cohiba in a bomb, and while the band looked pretty darn authentic, the size was not one that fit in any of the official Cohiba lines. It was still a tasty smoke, but I didn't buy it's authenticity.


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## karmaz00 (Dec 5, 2007)

hmm.fire it up see how it is


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## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

I'll measure it in a little bit and post the size here...


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## Jimbo14 (Aug 31, 2008)

Snake Hips said:


> Well the story doesn't sound good at all, but that cigar looks surprisingly good. Color, wrapper, cap, band...but the source is almost auto-fake. Only thing I can see is possibly excess black at the top of the band.
> 
> What is it _supposed_ to be, a Robusto? Does it match the size specs of the Cohiba Robusto?
> 
> Tell him to smoke it knowing it's most likely counterfeit. He might be pleasantly surprised - it's either a very good fake or it's real.


 :tpd: This cigar looks the real thing. But as Snake hips said the story sounds dodgy. Send it to me - ill smoke it and let you know :banana:


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## Phil The Thrill (May 3, 2008)

One thing I notice is that it seems that the band might be a bit on the loose side, with what looks like a small misprint on some of the dots in the second picture. 

I should mention, though, that I have had genuine Cohibas with a loose band.


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## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

The band is a tad loose. It won't slide off, but it will slide up and down a bit...


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## Phil The Thrill (May 3, 2008)

Hmmm... the band is misaligned is it? The sliding up and down a little bit is what my Cubans did. If it is a fake, it looks to be very very good.

Can we get an approximate size? We can see if the $15 figure is realistic compared to the size of Cohiba.

I'm leaning towards fake though: Out in open display, cheap for something that people would naively spend more for, loose band...


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## PipesandGOP (Feb 7, 2008)

Phil The Thrill said:


> Hmmm... the band is misaligned is it? The sliding up and down a little bit is what my Cubans did. If it is a fake, it looks to be very very good.
> 
> Can we get an approximate size? We can see if the $15 figure is realistic compared to the size of Cohiba.
> 
> I'm leaning towards fake though: Out in open display, cheap for something that people would naively spend more for, loose band...


The loose band thing for me is just... well idk. It would have to be to the extreme for it to mean much to me. I had a few cohibas that I stupidly left out in the car a few nights and due to the drastic decrease in humidity, the band was loose. 
From the looks of the cigar itself and the band, it looks good, but I'm ready to hear the size myself.


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## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

I left it at home. Doh! I'll have to get the measurements in the morning. Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this one.

Another interesting tidbit on this - the cigar had the $14.99 price tag stuck to the cap. It took a tad bit of the cap off when I removed it. Who does that??


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## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

It's exactly 5 inches long. I'm fairly certain it's a 50 rg. Any Cohiba's fit this size?


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## Codename47 (Aug 6, 2007)

Patrick B said:


> It's exactly 5 inches long. I'm fairly certain it's a 50 rg. Any Cohiba's fit this size?


Robusto is 4.8 and 50RG, Siglo II is 5.0, but 42RG.


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## Rudder (Feb 7, 2008)

The only way to find out is to smoke it. Of course you need to have smoked the real thing quite a bit to tell the difference. Fakes are getting harder to distinguish each year by looks alone. Your best bet is to get a reputable supplier.


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## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

Sounds like we have a fake due to the size issue. No biggie, he only bought two. He was just going out on a limb for the fun of it. I'm going to smoke it anyway and see what it tastes like.


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## Snake Hips (May 30, 2008)

Patrick B said:


> I left it at home. Doh! I'll have to get the measurements in the morning. Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this one.
> 
> Another interesting tidbit on this - the cigar had the $14.99 price tag stuck to the cap. It took a tad bit of the cap off when I removed it. Who does that??


Haha, well at least we know it didn't come cellophaned. +1 for the counterfeiters...

But yeah, the Cohiba Robusto, as most Cuban robustos are, is less than 5 inches long. But yes, let us know how it is. They did a great job with it, so it may be an alright smoke.


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## DBCcigar (Apr 24, 2008)

Well....

First of all, anyone just selling them (In the US) on the counter is a BIG dumb a$$! It's hard to just look at it and tell. Go back to the store and put a black light on the box and see if the shield of Cuba pops out on the seal. :bounce:

Send it to me and I'll tell you if it authentic or NOT. Sometimes that's the best way to tell, that is if you've smoked enough of the real deal to be able to tell....


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## DBCcigar (Apr 24, 2008)

Patrick B said:


> I left it at home. Doh! I'll have to get the measurements in the morning. Thanks everyone for your thoughts on this one.
> 
> Another interesting tidbit on this - the cigar had the $14.99 price tag stuck to the cap. It took a tad bit of the cap off when I removed it. Who does that??


That guy does not even need to be in the business doing some STUPID $hit like that!


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## Rudder (Feb 7, 2008)

Patrick B said:


> Sounds like we have a fake due to the size issue. No biggie, he only bought two. He was just going out on a limb for the fun of it. I'm going to smoke it anyway and see what it tastes like.


 I've smoked some pretty damn good fakes before. If they created their own brand instead of counterfeiting I'd buy a box.


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## 6clicks (May 1, 2008)

I've got several and they're 4 and 7/8" and I know they're real. They must be the 4.8X50. All mine have a clear plastic sleeve on the bottom half with a slip of paper in it with Chinese characters on it. They were purchased in the Orient.


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## Codename47 (Aug 6, 2007)

6clicks said:


> I've got several and they're 4 and 7/8" and I know they're real. They must be the 4.8X50. All mine have a clear plastic sleeve on the bottom half with a slip of paper in it with Chinese characters on it. They were purchased in the Orient.


Chinese characters on Robustos band? ound:


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## 6clicks (May 1, 2008)

No not on the band. There's a clear sleeve on each stick on the bottom (foot) about 2-1/4" long. There's a piece of white paper beneath it with the charachers on it. Maybe a tax stamp deal or something. I believe they were purchased at a Davidoff shop. Anyway, all the Cohibas have them. The Partigas Serie D No 4 didn't come with them and neither did the Bolivars.


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## Vancehu (Nov 23, 2008)

You cannot buy Cohiba cigars from a retail shop for $15. It's not possible.

Unless you are talking about cigarette size cigars.


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## Bigfoot (Jun 25, 2007)

Vancehu said:


> You cannot buy Cohiba cigars from a retail shop for $15. It's not possible.
> 
> Unless you are talking about cigarette size cigars.


I'm not sure what retail shop you are taliing about...I pay just over $10 a stick for a Cohiba Robusto from my source.

In a Cuban LCDH, Cohiba Robustos are under $10 a stick.

This cigar is obviously a fake and Patrick you need to call out the cigar shop that sold it to him...That is a bad bad move on the retailers part.


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## Patrick B (Nov 5, 2008)

Bigfoot said:


> I'm not sure what retail shop you are taliing about...I pay just over $10 a stick for a Cohiba Robusto from my source.
> 
> In a Cuban LCDH, Cohiba Robustos are under $10 a stick.
> 
> This cigar is obviously a fake and Patrick you need to call out the cigar shop that sold it to him...That is a bad bad move on the retailers part.


It's no biggie, it was a one time thing in a shop that is a hundred miles from his house. He was just curious. I think I'm going to go smoke the one I have now for shites and giggles.


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## Snake Hips (May 30, 2008)

Vancehu said:


> You cannot buy Cohiba cigars from a retail shop for $15. It's not possible.
> 
> Unless you are talking about cigarette size cigars.


It is possible. Not all retail shops in the world are in California.


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## Vancehu (Nov 23, 2008)

I have seen plenty of Cohiba for $10 a pop. They're just not real. And yes, every one of those fake cigar sellers have some kind of relatives working at the factory.

A box of Cohiba Robusto is going for around $240 in Cuba, let's say your guy can get it at the whole sale price from S. America, Asia or Europe, which will be around $200 a box, risking the cigars through US custom, do you honestly believe they can sell them at $10 a pop and make money? 

Even at $20 a stick is a good deal. There is a good reason why every where else in the world you go, you will have to pay at least $25 a stick, even in low tobacco tax countries.


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## Codename47 (Aug 6, 2007)

The cheapest Robustos from a verified sources I know were 340$ for a box. 10$ is totally nonsense :shocked:


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## Snake Hips (May 30, 2008)

Vancehu said:


> A box of Cohiba Robusto is going for around $240 in Cuba, let's say your guy can get it at the whole sale price from S. America, Asia or Europe, which will be around $200 a box, risking the cigars through US custom, do you honestly believe they can sell them at $10 a pop and make money?
> 
> Even at $20 a stick is a good deal. There is a good reason why every where else in the world you go, you will have to pay at least $25 a stick, even in low tobacco tax countries.


No they can't, not in the U.S. obviously. But Habanos retailers can, and do. Just over $10 shipped is what Robustos are going for; paying more than that is ridiculous. If you think $20 for one is a good deal, then go ahead and buy them up if you have that kind of money to throw away and you think they're worth it.


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## stfoley (Jul 28, 2008)

Are you sure it's not a dominican cohiba?


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## d_day (Aug 24, 2008)

stfoley said:


> Are you sure it's not a dominican cohiba?


 Pics in the original post show "Habana, Cuba" on the band. Not a Dominican.


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